The short answer is NO!!
This common association, especially when used in published papers either referring to the v-gel® as LMA® or incorrectly referencing other papers whereby an LMA® brand is used, is factually incorrect and very frustrating for us!
So why are they different?
LMA® is a trade name of a product invented by Archie Brain in 1988. There are now many different types of human-specific LMA® (eg Classic, Proseal, Flexible) available to the human anaesthetists, but it’s typically the Classic LMA® that has been previously used in some veterinary studies on dogs, pigs and rabbits but, due to them being human-specific, these have had limited success.
The v-gel® and the LMA® both come under the title of Supraglottic Airway Devices (SGAD), used to maintain airway patency by sitting outside of the trachea, above glottis, but they are very different in how they sit and create this seal.
As an early SGAD, the classic LMA® is a first-generation human device: a simple, low pressure pharyngeal seal with limited protection from aspiration and no specific design to lessen risk.
The device is essentially a soft diaphragm with an inflatable balloon around the edge attached to a tube. The diaphragm is inserted into the pharynx and the balloon inflated against the pharyngeal wall.
Over time and as things developed, second-generation human devices were bought to market: specially designed for more safety with a high-pressure seal coping better with patient ventilation and reducing risk of aspiration. These second-generation devices are more indicated for
- GA maintenance in shorter length procedures
- CPR to secure airway
- Essential pert of difficult airway trolley
- Primary device when urgent airway required
Within this second-generation group lays the i-gel®, invented by Dr Mohammed Nasir who goes on to develop the specie-specific v-gel® which was classified within the same grouping.
The i-gel® had many improvements on the Classic LMA®:an anatomically shaped device meant the negation of any inflation, sitting directly over the glottis mirroring the anatomical shape. Plus, the inclusion of an upper oesophageal seal with an integral gastric channel meant in all, there was less trauma and better protection and control of aspiration.
These same safety features were transferred to the original v-gel® (developed 2012 for cat and rabbit) with them being specie-specific i.e. anatomically correct for each species the device was intended for. The cat version did have an inflatable dorsal section to allow a higher seal pressure required for positive pressure ventilation. They protected the airway from aspiration by sealing in the upper oesophagus, but the gastric channel was only viable in the dog version (developed 2022) due to physical size of the devices.
In 2020 & ‘22 the improved v-gel® Advanced for cats and rabbits and the addition of the Dog v-gel® respectively, gave us essentially a third-generation device. These devices gave an increased seal pressure by now re-lining the whole pharynx containing the glottis inside the bowl, rather than sitting half-way down directly over the glottis and the dog device as previously mentioned had an integral gastric channel.
So, to directly compare a v-gel® Advanced to a Classic LMA® is like comparing a 1980’s Mini to a 2022 Jaguar. They are both cars, but different manufacturers and a totally different class in regard to safety features and comfort.